Gribenes may not sound very sexy, but when you bite into these salty, crunchy little morsels of fried chicken skin, you’ll fall in love with this Jewish “bacon” replacement.
In case you were wondering, gribenes are little bits of fried chicken skin, usually left behind after rendering chicken fat into schmaltz, which itself is known as “Jewish liquid gold”. When salted, mixed with onion and allowed to cook a bit longer, gribenes develop a deep, moreish flavor that closely resembles bacon.
For many years, gribenes were relegated to the realm of uncool Jewish dishes, the kind no one really wants to hear about, let alone taste. But with the resurgence of pandemic-era canning and sourdough baking, and the rise of Jewish delis as hip hangouts, the time has come for gribenes to grab the spotlight once again.
Traditionally, gribenes were paired with chopped liver for Passover, as a way to add texture and crunch to an otherwise boring dish. They are also often served atop kugel for Rosh Hashana.
But in our household, we love using these babies as a replacement for bacon. I make a fantastic GLT - gribenes, lettuce and tomato - sandwich, where the studdings of crispy chicken morsels mingle with the mayo and veggies to form an umami-rich food experience.
They also work very well as a baked-in topping for focaccia, along with sweet caramelized onions.
And the resulting schmaltz? Well, there’s a reason that’s called liquid gold. Use it anywhere you would use duck fat - for example, for frying the best potatoes of your life. We also find it especially delicious for frying our Italian fried chicken.
Next time you’re craving something salty, pass that bag of potato chips and opt instead for something truly Jewish, like gribenes.
Ingredients
- 1 pound chicken skin
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 onion peeled and cut into ¼ slivers
Nutritional Facts
Instructions
- Dice chicken skin into small pieces of about ½-inch in diameter. This is best done with a knife while the skin is frozen, or scissors if it’s been defrosted.
- Bring a large pan to medium heat. Add chicken skins and salt to pan, and cook for about 15 minutes.
- Add onion slivers to the pan, and stir well with the chicken. Lower the heat to low to prevent the chicken from burning, and continue cooking for about 20 minutes.
- Strain the gribenes through a fine mesh sieve, collecting the resulting chicken fat (schmaltz) in a jar.
- Return chicken and onions to the pan, and cook on low heat for another 20-25 minutes, until they become crunchy and browned (take care not to burn).
- Gribenes will keep in an airtight container in the fridge for 4 days. It can be used anywhere you would use bacon - atop salads, in GLT (Gribenes, Lettuce and Tomato) sandwich, or folded into an omelet.
- Schmaltz will keep for a week, or 6 months in the freezer. It can be used to fry potatoes, or in place of butter in savory pastries.
